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Join Hannah, founder of Starcroft Farm Cabins, to hear about the three women whose stories inspired her stargazing cabins and the role of legend and folklore in reimagining their experiences for guests.
There's Matilda, William the Conqueror's powerful wife; Catherine, writer of the first tourist guide to Battle Abbey; and Lucy Webster, the Abbey's last heiress. During three pivotal points in the region's history, they made their mark in unique ways. Yet sometimes their stories have struggled to be heard amid the noise surrounding the Battle itself.
Using books written about and by these women, as well as photos and other sources from Hannah's research, we'll revisit some of the stories told about them with a sense of curiosity.
Why might the Duchess of Cleveland have ridden around town on her white donkey, admonishing residents with scruffy gardens? Was it fear, devotion or something else entirely that drove Matilda of Flanders, heavily pregnant with her ninth child, across the seas for her English coronation? And why has Lucy Webster often been written off as 'insane' in the history books, her life reduced to a sentence or two?
We'll also be joined by special guest, Dr Sarah French, who will share with us some insights from her fascinating PhD research into Catsfield's own Victorian travel writer, Annie Brassey of Normanhurst Court.
This friendly and informal session, part of Battle Folk & Fable festival, will ask how can we look again at long-forgotten histories to better illuminate the past? And crucially, why should we?
Please feel free to bring any local stories, anecdotes or research you'd like to share.
And if you'd like to march into Battle to enjoy more of the festival after the event, it's a scenic 40-minute stroll along the 1066 Country Walk.
To include a cake break, with delicious cake from Great Park Farm.
Tickets: £10, with proceeds donated to the Folk and Fable Festival. Email us on hello@starcroftfarm.co.uk to book your place.
Entry is free for anyone attending our Summer Reading Retreat! Find out more here: https://www.starcroftfarm.co.uk/events/summer-reading-retreat.
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